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Mail Order Parent

UPDATE — our box arrived early and as usual everything is super cute. Are you seeing this lunch bag???

SPOILER ALERT: anyone close friends who are/may become pregnant or have a child under age 3…you’ll probably be receiving a gift certificate for one of these for your next gift-receiving occasion.A few months ago, a friend of mine recommended we try out Citrus Lane, a mail-order club that sends you a box of cool parenting/kiddo stuff each month. We’ve been doing it for three months now and we LOVE it.I think its still true that almost nothing is better than receiving a package IN THE MAIL. And that seems to be even more true when you’re home with a kiddo all day.Basically, you sign up, tell them your child’s age and gender and choose to enrool for 3 months, 6 months or a full year. Now, each month, we get a fun yellow box filled with nifty toys, clothing items, snacks and samples of other nifty stuff for kids and moms. There is a different theme every month. Last month was travel, so we received some wonderful travel-sized bottles of California Baby Shampoos, healthy, kid-friendly snack bars and a bunch of other fun stuff. The month before that, it was “Fun in the Sun” so we got a cute mesh Lilly-sized backpack, fancy organic baby sunscreen, the BEST sunhat ever and some nifty pool/bath toys. This month is supposed to be “back to school.” Our box will arrive tomorrow and I’m already excited (and so is Lilly…well, she will be when she sees the box).

We’ve signed up a few friends already and so far everyone seems to love it. The cost is $35/month but I’ve always found coupon codes for 10 to 20 percent off, which makes it a better deal.At first the idea of something “mail order” seemed so old-fashioned but I think thats half the reason we enjoy it so much…the anticipation and the fact that we don’t have to DO anything but wait is all part of the fun.In fact, I like this so much I’ve been thinking about enrolling in a similar program called Wittlebee. This one is a kids clothing club. Similar idea. You tell them your child’s size, gender and “style” (whatever that means) and what you need most (pants, socks, tops, etc). Then each month you get a box of clothes. And they look like GOOD clothes….of course those are just their promo pics so who knows.I’ve been considering this one for awhile but then I always think…”girl, please, you have a baby girl and you go to Target A LOT. Do you really need this?”. But the truth is, I try to limit my Lillian clothing indulgences as much as I limit my own, so we mainly shop from Target clearance racks. And even though we have wonderful, generous friends and family, gifts are usually adorable dresses…we don’t get too many gifts of socks and pajamas. So, whenever Lilly jumps a size or the seasons change I find myself going…”she doesn’t have anything that fits/is warm enough/has matching socks/we’re out of PJs AGAIN”.This is where a box of new, seasonally appropriate, properly fitting basic clothes starts to sound really tempting. But at the same time…really?!? Am I just being ridiculous?What about you? Does anyone have experience with Citrus Lane? Wittlebee? Other mail order programs you’d recommend? Know of any good COUPON CODES?? I find this stuff VERY tempting!

** Oh and this is NOT a sponsored post. I haven’t received any perks or payment for this. I just really like CL and am seriously interested in Wittlebee. 🙂